Hand-held computers or portable digital organizers, sometimes called personal digital assistants, have become cost-effective and useful as sources of information. One example of such a product is the PalmPilot personal digital assistant manufactured by 3Com, which includes various functionalities such as an address book, a date book, a basic calculator, expense reports, and games. This product may also be coupled to a personal computer for information transfer and back-up, and may incorporate a plug-in wireless modem for information transmission.
Many of the same individuals that have a need for portable digital assistants also carry many other devices, such as wireless telephones, cellular telephones, and pagers for communicating with remote sources. Other commonly carried electronic products include dictating and other recording devices, electronic game devices, cassette tape players, compact disk players, DVD players, or other sources of audible or visual programming.
As a consequence, a need remains for a singular device incorporating a plurality of communications and other functions, such that an individual could avail himself or herself of a variety of different communications functions without having to carry a plurality of completely separate products. It would also be desirable to provide such multiple functionality without duplication of hardware such as microprocessors and digital signal processors ("DSPs"). A flexible product preferably also would enable a user to combine communication and other functionally specific modules with a user friendly, common, multi-purpose base unit.